Least-cost path networks from the Neolithic to the Middle Ages in lowlands

Abstract

The present paper investigates how least-cost calculations contribute to our understanding of settlement patterns and the movement of population groups and commodities in lowland areas, where changes in water levels directly affected the road network. First, the environmental context is reconstructed using a dynamic flood and rainfall-runoff model, followed by the construction of different cost surfaces to model dry and wet periods. The reconstruction of the changes in the road network is based on the spatial distribution of the archaeological material.